Political Sign Size Limits Urged

Democrats Ask Gop To Agree

August 30, 2007|By DANIEL P. JONES; Courant Staff Writer

WEST HARTFORD — The chairwoman of the Democratic town committee has challenged her Republican counterpart to agree to have all local candidates refrain from using oversize, billboard-style campaign signs.

Although town zoning rules do not apply to the use of political signs, which are protected by free-speech rights, residents complained that the oversize placards were unsightly when some candidates, Republicans and Democrats, posted them in residential neighborhoods during the 2005 local campaign in West Hartford.

``I hope you will agree that this is one more way that we can put partisanship aside and do something that the people of our town will appreciate,'' Democratic Chairwoman Maureen Magnan said in a letter asking Republican Chairman Carl Donatelli to agree to the ban.

Magnan did not propose a specific size limit for signs.

Donatelli said Wednesday that Republican candidates are sensitive to the concerns about large lawn signs, but that he could not guarantee that none of the larger-than-usual signs would be used.

Newcomers to the Republican ticket might have to use the signs as a means of gaining some name recognition during the fall campaign, he said. And each candidate has his or her own campaign to run, Donatelli said.

``It's a worthy objective,'' he said. ``I don't know that I can make a promise on behalf of all the candidates that no signs will go up, regardless of the size,'' he said. ``We can make the suggestion, but we really can't enforce it.''

Donatelli did promise that no Republican candidate would post a campaign sign before Oct. 1, minimizing the amount of time that signs would be used in the campaign. Election Day is Nov. 6.

Magnan said she was authorized by all of the Democrats running this fall to seek the mutual ban on oversize campaign lawn signs.

In the 2005 campaign, when 13 candidates were vying for seats on the town council, several of the candidates began super-sizing their lawn signs.

They erected 4-by-8-foot signs, about as big as a queen-size mattress and more than twice the size of a standard campaign sign.

Zoning enforcement officer Eva Espinosa began receiving complaints about the signs from residents who were troubled by the trend.

She explained to the residents that political signs, unlike commercial signs that are regulated, are protected by the First Amendment, and therefore not regulated.